The Annotated Northanger Abbey

by Jane Austen

  48. The Bath Chronicle listed the most prominent new visitors in Bath. In a letter from Bath, Jane Austen remarks, “There was a very long list of Arrivals here, in the Newspaper yesterday” (May 17, 1799). In Persuasion the arrival of a viscountess and her daughter, who are cousins of the main character, is announced in the Bath paper.

  49. The heroine of Pride and Prejudice is an avowed studier of character, and several other heroines in Austen’s novels exhibit a similar proclivity, one they undoubtedly share with the author herself. Henry Tilney is the strongest example of such a studier among Austen’s heroes, which both helps him understand Catherine so well and makes him comment more than once on her inexperience and obtuseness in the art of understanding others.

  50. Society: the company of others.

  51. In this paragraph Henry parodies the language of sentimental fiction, in which characters, especially heroines, regularly experience such torments and distresses.

  52. Catherine’s reaction shows how different she is in her emotional makeup from sentimental heroines, however much she may still be somewhat in thrall to the ideas and expectations proffered by their creators.

  VOLUME II, CHAPTER XI

  1. canvassed: discussed.

  2. want of consequence: lack of social importance or prominence.

  3. Insignificant in terms of the position and connections of her family.

  4. portionless: lacking in a dowry.

  5. When the issue of James’s proposed marriage to Isabella first arose, Catherine was described as having “unfixed” ideas of her father’s income (this page). She is similarly ignorant of her own fortune, a sign of both her inexperience—most young women would know their dowry due to its importance in determining their marriageability—and her nonmaterialistic nature.

  6. Since Henry, the younger brother, will inherit considerably less than Frederick, material interest might possibly dictate insisting on an even wealthier wife for him.

  7. just: exact, accurate.

  8. situations: social and economic positions.

  9. forestalled: brought forward ahead of time.

  10. She means Captain Tilney will confess only Isabella’s lack of money and status, not her defects of character.

  11. disgust her with: create a distaste in her for. “Disgust” did not have as strong a connotation then as it does now.

  12. country: county.

  13. He is calculating the number of young people of genteel rank in the local area, not all young people; “neighbourhood” is used elsewhere in this manner in Jane Austen, a reflection of how little those of lower rank were considered when it came to elite social life.

  14. The seasons for hunting and shooting were fall and early winter. Spring, the current season, was the least active time in rural areas, when many wealthy people stayed away from their country homes (summer offered its own set of opportunities for amusement).

  15. A woman who married a lord, baronet, or knight was called “Lady,” but the names of such women would differ according to their husbands’ names. Thus two or more women with the title and the same last name would almost certainly be sisters who received their titles through being daughters of a duke, marquess, or earl, the three highest of the five ranks of the aristocracy (they also would be unmarried, since if married they would affix “Lady” to their marital name). Such women would be of very high social standing, which is why General Tilney thinks they would offer such fine society for his guest and why he twice expresses his regret at their absence.

  16. “To eat one’s mutton” was a proverbial expression meaning to take one’s meal. It derived from mutton’s being a traditional mainstay of the English diet, due to the widespread raising of sheep.

  17. The parish was the basic unit of local government as well as of the church, and the clergyman and the principal landowners constituted the leading figures in a parish. Among the duties of local government were dispensing aid to the poor, keeping law and order, maintaining roads, and paying for the upkeep of the parish church. Meetings would determine policy on such matters, as well as the tax rates imposed on parishioners to pay for these activities. The meetings, like the parish generally, would tend to be dominated by a small, closely knit elite, which is why it is important for Henry, part of this elite, to attend.

  18. That is, to fix a precise day and time.

  19. A surveyor examines land or other property to determine its value or its possible uses. General Tilney’s surveyor, who probably works for him regularly but may not be a full-time employee, could be examining a piece of his existing property with an eye to improving or selling it, or a piece of other property with an eye to purchasing it. Brockham is most likely a fictitious name; the only actual Brockham in England is an obscure village in Surrey, a county far from Gloucestershire.

  20. Clubs were popular associations for men, especially wealthy men. They met in towns and cities, though they could, as is the case here, contain members from nearby rural areas. Some clubs existed purely for drinking and socializing. Others were devoted to specific pursuits, often serious ones, whether political, religious, charitable, scientific, or cultural. General Tilney’s active nature, and interest in various projects at home, would make him a likely candidate for a club of the second type. He could also belong to one of the many book clubs of the time, whose members, almost invariably male, would read and discuss books and other items of interest. Political pamphlets were particularly favored, with book clubs forming one of the principal means for their dissemination; the pamphlets General Tilney was reading recently may have been connected with his club.

  21. The neighbors he is speaking of are probably of lower social standing than himself. Clubs could include middle-class as well as upper-class men, and there would be few if any other men of General Tilney’s wealth in the immediate area.

  22. Venison would be a rare treat for them. Deer had been the most popular animal for hunting in the Middle Ages, but increasing population and the consequent clearing of forests for farmlands had reduced their numbers in succeeding centuries. By this time only very affluent people could afford to maintain large tracts of uncultivated land to support an active deer population. This made venison a highly prestigious and desired meat, and General Tilney would find giving a buck to his neighbors a potent way of pleasing them and of impressing them with his wealth.

  23. This concern for local good opinion was typical for large landowners, who engaged in acts of hospitality and charity for their neighbors. It helped maintain their prestige and influence, and it could be vital if they wished to pursue a political career. Many Parliamentary districts allowed a sizable proportion of local men to vote, so while the costs of running and habits of social deference usually meant that only those of high rank were candidates, those candidates would have to curry general favor.

  24. General Tilney here shows his usual precision about time. The well-maintained condition of long-distance roads made accurate estimations of travel times possible.

  25. Ready money was cash. A draft was an order, directed toward a specific person or institution, for money to be paid at some point in the future—which always left the possibility of nonfulfillment.

  26. The housekeeper is the head female servant. Henry’s housekeeper is probably his only head servant and the manager of all his staff, since it is doubtful that his household at Woodston is grand enough to also have a butler, the male counterpart to a housekeeper. The housekeeper would organize the preparation of the meal. She may be the cook as well; the two functions could be combined in more modest households.

  27. Henry had not planned to be in the parish on Sunday, for he could trust the performance of the services to his curate (see note 24). He may be reluctant to return on Sunday from a sense that, even with a curate doing the duties, it would look bad for him to leave Woodston. Alternately, he may have a disinclination to travel on Sundays, for such travel was often regarded as a violation of the Sabbath unless really necessary.

 
28. Catherine has just received a double lesson in not taking General Tilney at his word, for in his last speech the General similarly proclaimed there was no need to fix a time for his arrival before proceeding to do exactly that. This passage shows her still struggling with the phenomenon, though at least recognizing its existence and her need to cope with it.

  A relatively grand parsonage of the time.

  [From J. Alfred Gotch, The English Home from Charles I to George IV (New York, 1918), p. 293]

  [List of Illustrations]

  29. well-connected: well-arranged or well-put-together; orderly. This would be in contrast to the Abbey, with its mixture of disparate architectures.

  30. They previously used the chaise and four when coming from Bath. Now, with Henry at Woodston and no need to convey Eleanor’s maid, they have no need for a second carriage.

  A young man shooting.

  [From Sir Walter Armstrong, Sir Henry Raeburn (London, 1901), p. 20]

  [List of Illustrations]

  31. situation: location.

  32. Cottages were dwellings of poor people.

  33. Chandlers were traditionally sellers of candles, but the term was also used for sellers of ordinary foodstuffs and other essentials. This is why even a small village can have multiple shops of this type.

  34. It was built by the General for his son; the patron of the clerical position was responsible for the clergyman’s home.

  35. A sweep was a curved driveway leading to a house. It allowed carriages to drop people off and then proceed (carriages could not back up).

  36. The Newfoundland is a large, shaggy dog that had recently been imported from that island in Canada, and had became a favorite dog in England, valued both as a pet and a retriever (for a picture, see this illustration). The latter function would endear it to Henry, whose collection of guns at Northanger indicates that he pursues the popular gentleman’s sport of shooting game birds, which required dogs to fetch the killed specimens. Terriers, in contrast, had long been bred in England, and were prized particularly for diving into holes in the ground to kill badgers or foxes; the growing interest in foxhunting during the eighteenth century had increased their popularity. It is not clear if Henry engages in foxhunting: many clergy of the time did hunt as well as shoot, though there were some writers who criticized killing for sport as incompatible with religious office.

  A grand house (Normanton Park, Rutlandshire) with a circular sweep in front.

  [From John Preston Neale, Views of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen, Vol. V (London, 1822)]

  [List of Illustrations]

  37. Bow windows that curved outward had become fashionable during this period; the way the window would extend from the building is why it would be, in effect, “thrown out.” This protruding character also meant that bow windows added to a structure not designed for them could look patched on. Thus the General, after offering his one suggestion for improving the room, immediately declares his aversion to such an improvement, a sign of his defensiveness toward Catherine’s lack of strong praise for a house whose construction he sponsored, and probably supervised. His bristling display of hurt feelings are why the next line indicates that Catherine would have been pained by his words if she had attended fully to them, and why Henry diverts the conversation to other subjects.

  38. introduced: brought in.

  A shop with bow windows.

  [From J. Alfred Gotch, The English Home from Charles I to George IV (New York, 1918), p. 305]

  [List of Illustrations]

  39. The unfurnished nature of the room bespeaks the newness of the house. It also explains why Henry is using the dining room to receive his guests. He may have placed lower priority on the drawing room because, being alone here, he has little need of a general sitting room.

  40. Windows reaching to the ground were popular at this time, for the additional views they afforded of the outside appealed to the increasing taste for the rustic and natural. Sometimes the windows functioned as doors also, thereby granting even greater access to the outdoors.

  41. The meadows would be part of the estate’s agricultural activities. Most clergy were given land, called glebe land, that they could farm; the products of the land were their main source of income, along with tithes from the local parish. Jane Austen’s father, a clergyman, raised a variety of crops and livestock. Meadows were used for grazing livestock: in most of western England, where this novel is set, that was the principal form of agriculture (eastern England focused more on growing crops, though there was tremendous variation in both areas).

  42. simplicity: sincerity.

  43. His allusion to a lady’s taste refers to Catherine, but it also reflects prevailing ideas of the time. Furnishing and decorating a home were considered feminine tasks and talents, and one of the basic functions of a bride was making her new home comfortable and attractive, whether through the arrangement of existing items or the purchase of new ones.

  44. Apples were the fruit most frequently grown in England. Catherine’s family has an orchard, which may produce apples.

  45. an object: an attractive object to view.

  46. Robinson is presumably the man implementing improvements to the property, which seem to have included a plan to demolish the cottage. Calling him by his last name shows he is not of very low status, for then he would be called by his first name. But not including the honorific of “Mr.” indicates he is not of high status either.

  47. paper and hangings: wallpaper and curtains.

  48. A pleasure ground was an area of landscaped grounds with ornamental plantings. Here it mainly means an incipient shrubbery, which would include the walk just described, as well as the bench.

  49. Large dinners would look especially abundant then, for the custom was not to serve a preselected combination of foods to each diner, but to place a great variety of dishes on the table and allow the diners to choose which ones they wanted.

  50. Side tables were popular pieces: some were purely decorative and intended for drawing rooms, while others functioned as serving tables in dining rooms. Since cold meat was normally a food for snacks or light meals, and would be only a supplement to the hot dishes put on the dining table for dinner, General Tilney looks to a side table to find some.

  51. “Melted butter” was a sauce of the time made from butter and flour. If overheated it could become oily.

  A side table.

  [From Harold Eberlein, The Practical Book of Period Furniture (Philadelphia, 1914), p. 190]

  [List of Illustrations]

  VOLUME II, CHAPTER XII

  1. Bath was not known for dust, since (unlike most parts of England at this time) it had paved streets. Isabella may simply be trying to find any means to complain about it, due to her own disappointment.

  2. She is probably referring to the length of ladies’ gowns, for while gowns were always full length, their exact hemline could vary slightly. Fashions changed frequently, so a new style could have appeared since Catherine left Bath.

  Bath Street (see note 5).

  [From Emma Austen-Leigh, Jane Austen and Bath (London, 1939), p. 8]

  [List of Illustrations]

  3. taken in: deceived, tricked.

  4. coxcomb: fop; conceited and foolish man inclined to show off.

  5. Bath Street is a short street near the Pump Room and the main baths (see this map), and hence a natural place to encounter someone.

  6. Isabella probably knows James’s direction, or address, but also knows he will not receive any letter from her (the recipient paid the postage, and had the choice of refusing a letter). Thus she needs Catherine to send him a letter pleading her case. This is why, after weeks of neglecting her promise to write to Catherine, and ignoring Catherine’s letters to her, she is now bothering to reply.

  7. town: London. Putney, the Thorpes’ place of residence, is close to London.

  8. frolic: lark.

  9. Theaters of the time often allowed people in for half price if they ente
red after the third act (of a five-act play).

  10. spirit: mettle, spirit of defiance.

  11. The French invasion of Egypt in 1798 led to a vogue for turbans, called mamaloucs after the Mamluk soldiers of that country. In a letter from 1799, Jane Austen speaks of wearing one, adding, “It is all the fashion now” (Jan. 18, 1799).

  Contemporary turbans.

  [From Elisabeth McClellan, Historic Dress in America, 1800–1870 (Philadelphia, 1910), p. 49 and p. 59]

  [List of Illustrations]

  12. Isabella’s spoken words contained the same features, but Catherine failed to notice them. Her perception of them now results from her disillusionment due to Isabella’s betrayal of James, as well as possibly from some growth in Catherine’s astuteness.

  13. impudent: shameless.

  14. Meaning Frederick’s safety from an engagement to Isabella. Danger would lie in the fact that, according to social convention, once a man formed an engagement, he, unlike a woman, could not break it.

  15. tricks have not answered: schemes or contrivances have not succeeded.

  A woman with a turban.

  [From Elisabeth McClellan, Historic Dress in America, 1800–1870 (Philadelphia, 1910), p. 49]

  [List of Illustrations]

  16. Catherine’s moral indignation overcomes her politeness, which would dictate not denouncing someone’s brother, especially while staying in their home. Her outburst also disregards the normal restraint of prudence, given her hopes of attracting Henry. However, Henry has consistently shown, and shows again in his response, that Catherine’s moral integrity and goodness of heart is a central part of her attraction for him.